The Creative Genie Within Us

Rhetorical Analysis Your Elusive Creative Genius Outline: 1. Introduction 2. Body Paragraph #1 Ethos 3. Body Paragraph #2 Cultural Logics 4. Body Paragraph #3 Pathos 5. Conclusion The Creative Genie Within Us In the TED Video “Your Elusive Creative Genius”, author Elizabeth Gilbert shares her take on the evolution of creative processes of an artist over the centuries and how success can pose a physical and mental toll on the creativity of an artist. The author adds credibility to her speech through the success of her previous work “Eat, Pray, Love” and by diving into the aid of famous artists such as Author Ruth Stone, Artist Tom Waits and Author Norman Mailer. She describes the societal and psychological construct of an artist and effectively uses cultural logics to steer the audience through the evolution of perception of art and artists over the period of Renaissance. Elizabeth utilizes this idea of a creative genie or a Daemon, to continue working through the anxiety and expectations that her next book won't be as rewarding as her last. Elizabeth Gilbert utilizes Ethos as a significant rhetorical device in order to convey her thoughts on the process works of various fellow authors that impacts the outcome of a successful book, poem, painting or a song. She establishes her credibility as a successful author but builds on it by also sharing intriguing stories and creative processes from other well known authors. It’s a preconceived notion that the past successes define and pose a huge challenge for an artist to deliver something better in the future but that challenge has proven to be ill winding, depressing and fatal for many historic personalities. Ruth Stone, a ninety year old poet shares her creative process as being a cat and mouse game. She reminisces a creative thought chasing the artist through the fields, as she scrambles to find a pencil and paper in her defense, so she can arrest that creative thought. Similarly, an artist Tom Waits once adopted a different process when he was driving down the road and a tune popped up in his mind and unable to record it or capture the tune, in fear that he would lose it, he began conversing with his idea. Tom gave his idea a persona he could refer to, and demanded that he come by at a more “opportune moment”. Elizabeth attempted a similar strategy during a moment of crisis, demanded that her ideas come to her as soon as possible as she’d done her part as an author and it’s up to her “daemon” to work the magic. For a creative person to have a “daemon” persona, could most certainly ease the anxiety of the creative process. Although the author gains reference from her fellow artists, she further delves into cultural logics to track down where her idea of a “protective psychological construct” comes from, which for any artist, defines the significance of having a safe place to construct and give shape to a premature idea. She references Ancient societies such as Greece and Rome as a place of thought where the idea of a genius was a “divine attendant spirit” that’s anything but confined to an individual and can be welcomed by anyone with the means to do so. That individual as such is deemed an artist due to the fact that he/ she had a genius that aided him in the cultivation of an art. Author Gilbert believed that the idea of having a “genius”, rather than being one relieves a bit of fear and anxiety in thinking about the role that an art plays in society. No matter how much value an artist adds, the lack of a “genius” could be fatal to the work of art. This gave the artist more room to be inspired and share the applause and criticism with the “genius” rather than shoot for the stars every single time. The ancient school of thought, although fictitious in nature, provided the time and mental space for an artist to revolutionize and move forward with their work of art. As the Renaissance came about, the society slowly ceased to accept the “genius” as an entity rather an individual with exceptional intellectual and creative abilities. The author criticizes the birth of “rational humanism” as the mere pressure of artists and the criticisms they come across for not embodying the genius/ creativity in them. The Renaissance gave rise to new schools of thought, where rationalistic human behavior and constructive criticism played roles in comparing the work of various artists whereas true art gained less appreciation and ancient mythical ideologies were frowned upon. With the artist as the only entity linked to a work of art, the author argues that an artists’ best work only paved their way back home, because the rationals questioned the genius left in them to trump their previous and what will be their best work. Any creative person can associate with the anxiety and toll it takes to produce a widely accepted and critically acclaimed work of art. But what’s worse is what comes after the storm of success and fame. After a massive success story of the book “Eat, Pray, Love”, Author Elizabeth Gilbert is confronted with the same question to which she uses pathos to communicate to the audience that she is more than afraid due to her belief in the notion that “creativity and suffering are somehow interlinked”. These artists live within the walls of the societal construct with all their preconceived notions, expectations and fears. Past successes can be unnerving as the audience tends to contrast and judge your current work with your best one. The mere pressure of an artist not embodying the spirit of creativity and not delivering a successful work of art has driven artists to their death for the last five hundred years. Living in a world where the work of artists is put under a comparative scrutiny of their previous success, Author Elizabeth is in denial of the global notion that her best work and greatest success is behind her. Elizabeth utilizes the concept of a “creative genie” or “daemon” to ease the anxiety of having to deal with her “biggest success will be a thing of the past” critics. Her idea of the creative process “being loaned to you” rather than the creative genie being you, helps the audience understand the pain of having to deal with the transcendental success of your life knowing you’ll never reach those heights again.